Where We Stand
Through June 6, the season has accumulated 406 GDD (base 50F) across 67 days since April 1. Bud break came in on April 4, and the vines are now in pre-bloom — a phase where the next ten days carry disproportionate weight. This past week added 75 GDD against a high of 85F and a low of 41F, with 0.10 inches of precipitation recorded. That 44-degree diurnal spread is worth noting: the heat moved the season forward, but the cold nights are keeping canopy development measured.
The Week Ahead
The seven-day forecast is not uniform. The first two days come in at 61F and 67F highs with 0.16 inches of rain on day one and dry conditions on day two. Day three drops to 54F with 0.93 inches of precipitation — the dominant event of the forecast window given bloom is underway or has peaked this past week across the valley. Days four and five carry residual light rain at 0.04 and 0.07 inches with highs of 62F and 63F. The back half of the week recovers: 75F on day six, 83F on day seven, both dry. The shape of this week is a wet, cool middle flanked by warmer, drier shoulders. Get those sprays on! The 0.93-inch event is the variable that will draw the most attention given where the vines are developmentally.
Season Context
At 406 GDD on day 67, the season is progressing, but the pace through bloom with a significant rain event arriving now places disease pressure dynamics squarely in focus for this valley. Historically, wet weather coinciding with bloom in the Willamette requires close observation of tissue development in the days that follow. The warm close to the forecast — 75F and 83F on days six and seven — suggests the season has momentum, but what the vines carry through the midweek moisture will shape how cleanly bloom and set progress.
The relationship between that midweek precipitation event and the warm weekend recovery is the variable most worth tracking as Week 24 approaches.